Your posts are great - thank you for sharing them with us. Seeing one aspect all drawn together is a great way to look in depth at foundations and nuances that makes the whole novel so well-knit.

One of the nuances I caught before you even brought it up, was how Jane forgives HERSELF, too. She thinks she could not have known, and still thinks allowing Wickham the secrecy that would allow him to reform was the right decision. Having the event prove her wrong has no impression on her: to her, basing the decision on the hope of repentance was justifiable.

Do you think that Mrs. Bennet wants the social standing of married daughters, rather than that security for them? She SAYS she is worried for what will happen to them, but when should we ever take Mrs. Bennet's protestations as fact, even about her own opinions? ;) If she was aiming for the bragging right, so to speak, then her spending, instead of saving for the future, is completely explicable: her spending is for social standing, too. She wants to host parties, balls, dinners, and have the earmarks of a good income.

Your post mentions Elizabeth misunderstanding Darcy's goodness, but I think the situation is that she underestimates his constancy, devotion -- whatever you want to call his feelings for HER. She early on said that compliments never take her by surprise; well, I think THAT one did!

Mr. and Mrs. Gardiner probably did not think that Elizabeth was working to recover Lydia. I am sure they knew that Darcy doing it all -- the only question was whether he was doing it for Elizabeth's sake, and they convince themselves he is.

I do not think we know whether Mr. Gardiner dislikes subterfuge from this. The circumstance he dislikes might well be being thanked continually for an important favour for which he is not responsible (and for which he is also fervently grateful). He was perfectly willing to allow Darcy and Elizabeth their 'secret' that Darcy was overflowing with admiration for his niece, and to keep Wickham's and Lydia's misbehavior from his new regiment, in hopes to aid them in their new life.

Wickham may not know how much Mr. Gardiner and Mr. Bennet told to the family, in which case, he was probably hoping to discover how far he could impose on Elizabeth in that area, as well as the other motives you ascribe to him.